1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to noise making devices that make noise by passing air across a vibrating element. More particularly, the present invention device relates to novelty noise making devices that have a self-contained bellow structure for creating the flow of air needed to create noise.
2. Prior Art Description
The prior art is replete with novelty devices that are designed to make noise. One class of such novelty devices is the vibrating element noisemaker. A vibrating element noisemaker typically has a conduit through which air passes. A vibrating element is placed in the conduit so that the vibrating element vibrates and makes noise as air runs through the conduit.
In many designs, the air that passes through the conduit and excites the vibrating element is created by blowing into the conduit. This is often the design of novelty instrument noisemakers, such as kazoos and harmonicas, that are played at the mouth. Other noisemakers rely upon a bellows to generate the air needed to excite the vibrating element and make noise. The bellows can take many forms. For instance, there are many novelty balls that make noise when the ball is squeezed. In such toys, the structure of the ball is the bellows and the vibrating element is a small structure positioned in a vent of the ball.
In some prior art noisemakers, a squeeze bulb is used to create a short strong burst of air. The squeeze bulb is often corrugated to help the squeeze bulb collapse when it is squeezed. Such designs are commonly used on game calls, such as duck calls, and are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 2,782,558 to Harley, entitled Call Device, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,785 to Primos, entitled Game Call Apparatus With A Selective Disablement Mode.
Regardless of whether the vibrating element noisemaker is a ball, kazoo or duck call, all vibrating element noisemakers share some common operational characteristics. Foremost among those characteristics is the fact that the only way to vary the noise produced by the noisemaker is to vary the flow of air traveling through the noisemaker. If a loud noise is to be created, a large burst of air is used. If a soft nose is to be created, a gentle puff of air is used.
A second characteristic shared by vibrating element noisemakers is that the flow of air beyond the vibrating element cannot be constricted. In a squeeze ball there is no structure beyond the vibrating element. In both kazoos and duck calls, enlarged resonance chambers are provided to increase the volume of the noise being made. If any restriction is placed beyond the vibrating element in the noisemaker, a backpressure condition develops that limits the flow of air past the vibrating element and therefore lessens the noise.
The present invention is a novelty noisemaker that utilizes a vibrating element. However, the chamber beyond the vibrating element is specially designed to enable the noisemaker to engage a secondary object without any detrimental effect to the noisemaker's ability to make noise. This improved noisemaker design is described and claimed below.